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Collective Force: Notes on Contribution and Disposition

September 7, 2020 Shawn P. Wilbur
Related links: “The Anatomy of the Encounter” (September 7, 2013) “Property, Individuality and Collective Force” (January 28, 2016) “Rambles in the Fields of Anarchist Individualism — No. 5” (August 3, 2020) “Letter to « l’en dehors » from Max Nettlau” (1922) A force of one thousand men working twenty days has been paid the same wages that one would be paid for working fifty-five years; but this force of one thousand has done in twenty days what a single man could not have accomplished, though he had labored for a million centuries. Is the exchange an equitable one? Once more, […]
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Rambles in the Fields of Anarchist Individualism — No. 6

August 9, 2020 Shawn P. Wilbur
“Life as experience tears up programs, treads decorum under foot, breaks the windows, descends from the ivory tower. It abandons the City of Established Facts, out through the Gate of Settled Matters and roams, vagabond, in the open countryside of the Unforeseen.” Rambles in the Fields of Anarchist Individualism: Project page Related links: Posts:   Rambles in the Fields of Anarchist Individualism No. 6. — Songs of Solitary Selves Just when it looked like summer had settled in for good, August delivered a bit of rain. And just when I thought I had pretty well wrapped up this set of […]
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Rambles in the Fields of Anarchist Individualism — No. 5

August 3, 2020 Shawn P. Wilbur
“Life as experience tears up programs, treads decorum under foot, breaks the windows, descends from the ivory tower. It abandons the City of Established Facts, out through the Gate of Settled Matters and roams, vagabond, in the open countryside of the Unforeseen.” Rambles in the Fields of Anarchist Individualism: Project page Related links: “The Gift Economy of Property“ “Occupancy-and-Use: Neo-Proudhonian Remarks“ “Property, Individuality and Collective Force“ “What could justify property?“ Pierre Leroux in “The Present” and “The Spirit of the Age” Posts: Rambles in the Fields of Anarchist Individualism No. 5. — Give and Take: The First Society I would, […]
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Rambles in the Fields of Anarchist Individualism — No. 4

July 21, 2020 Shawn P. Wilbur
“Life as experience tears up programs, treads decorum under foot, breaks the windows, descends from the ivory tower. It abandons the City of Established Facts, out through the Gate of Settled Matters and roams, vagabond, in the open countryside of the Unforeseen.” Rambles in the Fields of Anarchist Individualism: Project page Related links: “The Gift Economy of Property“ “Occupancy-and-Use: Neo-Proudhonian Remarks“ “A Tale of Three Provisos“ Posts: Rambles in the Fields of Anarchist Individualism No. 4. — Give and Take: The Last Polity Summer is finally upon us and the fields, which have been going through their slow, but steady […]
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Junius, “The Indifferent” (E. Armand)

July 17, 2020 Shawn P. Wilbur
In some autobiographical reflections published in l’Unique, E. Armand noted that late in 1897, he wrote “under the signature Franck or Junius or the two together” some articles for Sébastien Faure’s anarchist newspaper Le Libertaire. When I went in search of the writings, I found nothing earlier than February 1898, but I did find three articles signed “Junius” and three poems signed with some variation of “Frank J.” I’ve transcribed all six and am comparing the poems to similar work signed by Armand. I’ll have more to say about all of this is a future installment of the “Rambles in […]
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Rambles in the Fields of Anarchist Individualism — No. 3

July 14, 2020 Shawn P. Wilbur
“Life as experience tears up programs, treads decorum under foot, breaks the windows, descends from the ivory tower. It abandons the City of Established Facts, out through the Gate of Settled Matters and roams, vagabond, in the open countryside of the Unforeseen.” Rambles in the Fields of Anarchist Individualism: Project page Related links: Pierre-Joseph Proudhon: Self-Government and the Citizen-State E. Armand, “Life as Experience” (1906) Renzo Novatore, “Intellectual Vagabonds” (1917) “Note on Mutualism and the Market-Form“ “A passage missing from The Theory of Property“ “Proudhon on the State in 1861“ “Authority, Liberty and the Federative Principle“ “Anarchy: Historical, Abstract and […]
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Rambles in the Fields of Anarchist Individualism — No. 2

July 9, 2020 Shawn P. Wilbur
“Life as experience tears up programs, treads decorum under foot, breaks the windows, descends from the ivory tower. It abandons the City of Established Facts, out through the Gate of Settled Matters and roams, vagabond, in the open countryside of the Unforeseen.” Rambles in the Fields of Anarchist Individualism: Project page Sources: E. Armand, “Je n’ai pas toujours qu’une opinion,” Hors du troupeau No. 5-6 (janvier-février 1912): 85-86. E. Armand, “Parce que je tu considère comme mien,” Les Réfractaires no. 2-3 (31 janvier 1913): 13. Benjamin de Casseres, “Solitude,” Hors du troupeau No. 5-6 (janvier-février 1912): 86. E. Armand, “A […]
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Rambles in the Fields of Anarchist Individualism — No. 1

July 2, 2020 Shawn P. Wilbur
“Life as experience tears up programs, treads decorum under foot, breaks the windows, descends from the ivory tower. It abandons the City of Established Facts, out through the Gate of Settled Matters and roams, vagabond, in the open countryside of the Unforeseen.” Rambles in the Fields of Anarchist Individualism: Main page Related links: E. Armand, “Life as Experience” (1906) P.-J. Proudhon, The Philosophy of Progress (1853) “The Fundamental Laws of the Universe(!) and the Anarchism of Approximation“ “Notes on Liberty and neo-Proudhonian Anarchism“ Pseudonymous articles by E. Armand Eugène Bizeau, “Anarchist Individualist Initiation” (1924) Marius Jean (1887-1973) [main page] Posts: […]
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Anarchy: Action in the Face of Uncertainty

June 15, 2020 Shawn P. Wilbur
“A distinct, anarchy-centered anarchism is not just possible, but necessary, if we are to confront the systemic challenges facing us, and that anarchism seems likely, if seriously pursued, to be adequate to the task.” Related links: “Positive Anarchy, Profusion, Uncertainty and the Uses of History“ “Legal order“ P.-J. Proudhon, The Philosophy of Progress (1853) Defining Anarchy: These preliminary, exploratory writings are always half pleasure, half drudgery for me. You can have the right elements in hand and still require a lot of experimenting before they are anything like an elegant ensemble. With this series on “Defining Anarchy,” I’m conscious, not […]
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Anarchy, Harmony and the Maelstrom of Desire

June 12, 2020 Shawn P. Wilbur
“A distinct, anarchy-centered anarchism is not just possible, but necessary, if we are to confront the systemic challenges facing us, and that anarchism seems likely, if seriously pursued, to be adequate to the task.” “The ideal republic is an organization that leaves all opinions and all activities free. In this republic, every citizen, by doing what he wishes and only what he wishes, participates directly in legislation and in government, as he participates in the production and the circulation of wealth. Here, every citizen is king; for he has plenitude of power, he reigns and governs. The ideal republic is […]